Ongoing 'Communication Data Inquiry' Under Constitutional Court Review... Persistent Controversy Over Corruption Investigation Office's 'Media Surveillance'

Expansion of Scale and Targets Including Daily Newspapers and General Programming
Legal Community: "Serious Due to Lack of Awareness of Illegality"
People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy and Others Filed Constitutional Complaint Last Year
Head of Investigation Division 3: "Did Not Know"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The so-called 'media surveillance' by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) has drawn fierce criticism from various sectors as its scale and targets have expanded beyond what was initially reported.

According to the legal community on the 15th, the CIO obtained communication records of reporters covering the legal beat through telecommunications companies from August to October. It has been confirmed that reporters from some major daily newspapers and comprehensive programming channels had their communication records accessed. Other media outlets are still verifying whether their records were also checked by the CIO. While it is not uncommon for investigative agencies to access communication records of reporters and ordinary citizens, the legal community points out that the biggest issue is the CIO’s apparent lack of awareness regarding the illegality of such actions. The CIO explained that it was "a process of selecting investigation targets" and that "other investigative agencies such as the prosecution and police use the same method."

This explanation has fueled controversy because the CIO’s statement does not align with reality. It is known that the prosecution and police do not broadly target individuals from the outset but only access communication records of specific subjects truly necessary for investigations.

This issue has led to a constitutional complaint currently under review by the Constitutional Court. In June last year, organizations including the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy, the Lawyers for a Democratic Society, and the National Union of Mediaworkers filed a constitutional complaint arguing that Article 30, Paragraph 2, Subparagraph 2 of the Information and Communications Network Act is vague and fails to adequately protect personal information. The provision merely states that the types, frequency, and methods of notifying individuals when their communication records are accessed by investigative agencies are to be determined by a presidential decree, lacking specificity and thereby infringing on the fundamental rights of ordinary citizens whose personal information has been leaked.

Kim Dong-hoon, chairman of the Korea Journalists Association and one of the complainants, reportedly learned that in 2016, communication data of about 100 reporters from 17 media outlets was provided without authorization to the police and other agencies. However, when he inquired with the telecommunications companies, he was not informed of the reasons for the provision.

Regarding the recent CIO access to communication records, only the investigative purpose has been explained, with no information on the specific cases involved. It was revealed that the CIO’s Investigation Division 2 and Division 3 conducted the access, but Investigation Division 3 Chief Choi Seok-gyu reportedly stated that he was unaware of the communication data requests themselves. Accountant Kim Kyung-yul, who, along with media reporters, had his communication records accessed by the CIO, emphasized the seriousness of the situation, saying, "This is a matter of democracy."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.